The Sacrifice (4 page)

“What?” I hiss at Lexy, who’s staring at me as though I’ve
suddenly grown a second head.

“Oh my Goddess, Emma…” She shakes her head, unable to go on.

Then the deep, commanding voice of the new Sovereign booms from
the platform once more. “Emma Krist, come to me. Come take your place at my
side.”

No, it can’t be. It
can’t.
But somehow it is. Aiden James is
looking directly at me and so is every other person in the entire Glen. It’s an
introvert’s worst nightmare and it’s happening to
me.

“Go! Go
on,
he already called you
twice,”
Lexy
hisses, giving me a little shove toward the stage. I stumble clumsily and she
grabs my arm, somehow keeping me upright. Her perfectly shaped fingernails bite
into the bare skin of my upper arm but I barely feel the pain. “
Hurry,”
she
says urgently.

Somehow I manage to put one foot in front of the other and make my
way to the stage. I feel like a clumsy little kid who has somehow found her way
into the adult party and is now being punished for her intrusion. Aiden James
watches me every step of the way, which doesn’t help a bit, I can tell you.

I get to the stage and I’m about to head for the stairs on one
side but James apparently can’t wait for that. Leaning down, he slides his
hands under my arms and picks me up as though I weighed no more than a doll.
Then he sets me down beside him and firmly takes my hand.

I feel a shock go through me again as he interlaces our fingers
and nods to the crowd. They are murmuring uncertainly and several of the fairy
girls look pissed. How dare the new vampire Sovereign pick a dud over one of
them?

That’s right—a dud. I’m a dud!
I think and a sudden rush of sweet relief floods me. I just have
to tell him this—that I have no magic—and surely he’ll realize what a poor
choice I am. After all, one of the Sacrifice’s main purposes is to feed her
master’s power. (I don’t like to think about what other appetites she’s
supposed to feed.) But if I don’t have any magical power of my own, how can I
possibly augment Aiden’s? It’s impossible and I feel sure that as soon as I get
a chance to explain, he’ll let me go and pick someone else.

“Aiden,” I hiss at him from the corner of my mouth. “Uh, Mr.
James, I mean.” I’m honestly not sure what to call him.

“What is it, Emma?” To my intense discomfort, he stops looking at
the crowd and turns his full attention on me, staring at me as though we were
the only two people in the world.

“I…” I swallow hard and hear a little clicking sound in my dry
throat. “I just think there…there’s been some mistake,” I stammer.

“Oh?” He raises one eyebrow at me. “And why is that?”

“I…I’m a dud,” I say and it’s never been harder to get that word
out. I hope the people in the crowd can’t hear me admitting to my magical
incompetence but from the spiteful glee on some of the fairy’s faces, I’m
pretty sure they can. Aiden James is still just staring at me so I have to
elaborate. “I don’t have any magical power,” I explain.

“Yes, I know what a ‘dud’ is, Emma,” he says patiently. “But that
description does not fit you in the least.”

“Yes, it
does
,” I say desperately, still hyperaware that
every eye in the Glen is trained on the two of us. “I’ve never been able to
work a spell in my entire life. I know herbs and their magical properties but,
well, that’s about it.” I shrug uncomfortably. “So I
can’t
be the one
you want. There’s no way I could help, uh, feed your power because I don’t have
any of my own.”

His gray eyes flash silver in the deepening twilight. “Who says I
want you for your power, Emma? The Sacrifice gives her master far more than
that.”

“I…but…I…” The dark promise in those predatory eyes has my heart
pounding against my ribs. “Mr. James…Sovereign…”

“That’s correct, I
am
your Sovereign, in more ways than
one,” he growls softly. “And as such, I will put up with no more backtalk.
You,
Emma Krist, are the female I choose. The only one I want. I will have no
one else by my side this first year of my reign.”

“Oh,” I whisper faintly. Well, so much for the idea that he’ll let
me go because of my magical defects. His eyes are boring into mine and I am
powerless to look away. My knees feel like jelly. “All right,” I whisper at
last.

“The correct response is ‘Yes, Master,’” he says softly.

“Yes, M-master,” I repeat, only stumbling over the words a little.

“That’s good. Very good, Emma.” He strokes my cheek gently and the
touch of his large hand seems to start a slow fire under my skin. “A good first
step. You must submit to me in this, as in all things. Do I make myself clear?”

“Very clear…Master,” I add hastily.

He nods approval. “Very well. Then bare your throat for my
pleasure.”

My insides clench with a mixture of fear and longing. Oh Goddess,
I can’t believe this. He’s going to bite me, claim me as his in front of the
entire supernatural community. And there’s nothing I can do to stop it. To be
honest, I’m not even sure I
want
to stop it anymore. There’s something
about Aiden James—he’s overwhelming.

Slowly I tilt my head to the side, baring my throat for him. He
leans toward me and I can smell his scent—a dark, spicy musk that is entirely
masculine and completely intoxicating… But then he draws back, frowning.

“What?” I look up at him uncertainly. Has he changed his mind? Is
he going to let me go after all?

“Do you not know that you are forbidden to wear anything around
your neck at the Sacrifice Ceremony?” he asks me sternly.

“I…but I’m not,” I protest. “I don’t have on a necklace.”

“But you have this.” He fingers the loop of silky blue fabric
twisted around my throat.

“It…that’s part of my halter,” I protest, putting a hand to my
neck protectively. “And it’s not that big. I’m sure you can just, uh, work
around it—can’t you?”

His face darkens. “You have much to learn about respect and
submission, Emma. Take it off.”

“What? No way!” I cross my arms over my chest. “I can’t…can’t be
topless in front of this crowd.”

“Many others are.” He nods briefly at the female weres, their bare
breasts jiggling in the moonlight.

“I’m not like them,” I protest. “I
can’t
.”

“Are you refusing me?” he demands, his eyes flashing again. “Think
long and hard before you answer, Emma. And remember that any defiance you offer
me will be punished.”

“Am I refusing to go topless in front of the entire Glen? Yes…yes,
I am.” I lift my chin and glare at him, my heart jackhammering in my chest. “And
I don’t care about punishment as long as you punish me in
private
.” I
keep my voice barely above a whisper, for his ears alone. I sense there’s only
so much I can get away with and shouting defiance of my new lord and master for
the entire supernatural community to hear is definitely crossing the line.

His eyes narrow but he nods, as though I’d just confirmed
something he’d been thinking about me. “Very well. I will take blood from your
wrist instead of your throat. But know this, Emma—you
will
be punished
for your disobedience. And you will learn to submit to me before our time
together is through.”

I can’t stop myself from shivering—his voice is so cold I feel
like frost crystals are forming on my skin. Without any further warning, he
takes my hand and raises it to his mouth. Looking out at the crowd, he says, “I
claim this female as my Sacrifice. She is mine and no other male may touch her
so long as I own the rights to her body and soul.”

Then he opens his mouth and his fangs seem to grow impossibly long
and sharp in the moonlight. I try not to cry out when he sinks them into the
tender bracelet of blue veins that runs along the underside of my wrist, but I
can’t help emitting a muffled shriek. That
hurts.

It wouldn’t hurt so much if you were open to me. If you were
willing to submit.

The soft, deep voice in my head startles me. How did that happen?
Does he have some other magic I’m not aware of? Then the pain is suddenly
replaced with intense pleasure. I gasp as it floods me, stroking my nipples
until they’re tight with desire and sliding between my pussy lips like rough,
demanding fingers. My spine arches and my hips thrust involuntarily forward,
reacting to the phantom pleasure. I can’t help myself—I’m melting into a puddle
of lust. Wet and panting. Wanting more. But more what? What the hell is going
on? What’s happening to me?

I’m showing you how it can be. Next time don’t make me force it.

Abruptly the pleasure ends, as though it was cut off by a knife. I
become aware that the crowd is roaring approval and everything seems to be
spinning around me. Why am I so dizzy? Surely he hasn’t taken that much blood.
So why—?

The world starts to tilt, skewing crazily sideways as he pulls at
my wrist, drinking me down. Then, as suddenly as they pierced me, his sharp
fangs withdraw. Strong arms catch me before I can fall face first onto the
wooden stage. Aiden James lifts me easily, cradling me against him with one
arm.

“I declare this Sacrifice acceptable,” he thunders, causing the
crowd to roar even louder. “Celebrate in whatever way you choose,” he
continues. “I go to claim what is rightfully mine.”

Then he turns and strides off the stage, taking me with him.

Chapter Four

I lie helpless in his arms, overcome with pain and pleasure and
still in shock over the events of the last ten minutes. Did that really just
happen? Did the new Sovereign really just claim me—plain, mousy little dud of a
witch Emma Krist—as his sacrifice? It doesn’t seem real…doesn’t seem possible.

It’s only when the vampire deposits me in a waiting limo and
climbs in after me that it really begins to sink in. This is real…this is
happening.
Right here and right now, I have suddenly become someone’s real life sex
and blood slave. I am in bondage to the new Sovereign and there’s nothing I can
do about it.

I sit up slowly and look at Aiden James, who is staring intently
back at me. “That was quite a display of defiance you put on,” he remarks. His
deep voice is soft but there is something in his eyes that makes me shiver.

“If you expect me to say I’m sorry, you’re going to be
disappointed.” I don’t know where I get the courage to speak like this to him.
Maybe it’s just a vague feeling I have that if I don’t stand up to him now, I
never will and he’ll run roughshod over me for an entire year. Goddess, an
entire year! I’m stuck with him for an
entire year.

“I could make you
beg
to apologize,” he says. “But I
won’t—not now.”

I’m frankly surprised at this. “Why not?” I blurt before I think.

He raises an eyebrow at me. “Are you complaining that I don’t
choose to make you grovel?”

“No, no,” I say hastily. “But you just…you went on and on about
punishing me. I didn’t…didn’t think you’d let me out of it so easily.”

“Oh, I’m not,” he says casually. “Make no mistake about it, Emma,
you
will
be punished for your insolence. Just not right now.” He looks
at me speculatively. “As for my reasons for the delay, I find that anticipation
heightens any punishment. Also…I find myself intrigued by your modesty. Any
other woman in the Glen would have gladly stripped herself when I demanded it.
Yet you refused.”

“I’m shy,” I say stiffly. His promise of future punishment has my
pulse pounding with fear but I try not to show it. “I don’t…don’t do that kind
of thing.”

“You mean you don’t show your body?”

I swallow hard and nod. “I mean maybe if I were tall and skinny
like my cousins but I’m not so I don’t want to…” Realizing I’m babbling, I make
myself stop.

He nods slowly. “I see, though I think there’s more to it than
that. Has it ever occurred to you that not every male finds the ‘tall and
skinny’ type arousing?” His eyes burn into mine. “Back when I was made a
vampire, women had curves—real curves. Full breasts and hips…” His eyes roam
over my body, making me blush and try to cover myself. “A man misses such
things,” he murmurs, almost to himself.

I don’t know how to respond to this—is Aiden James actually saying
he prefers his women short and chunky to tall and supermodel thin? Before I can
think how to phrase the question, he is leaning forward to give directions to
the limo driver.

“Where are we going?” I ask, as the long black car starts smoothly
on its way.

“Home,” he says calmly.

“Your home or my home?” I ask, hoping fervently that he’s just
going to call it a night and drop me off at my apartment. We can always get
into the whole punishment and submission thing the next time we get together,
right? But Aiden’s next words shatter my half-formed hopes.

“My home
is
your home now,” he says. “You will live in my
house, eat at my table, and sleep in my bed for the duration of your term as Sacrifice.”